A few weeks ago, I was being impatient with my garden. My zucchini plant was huge and had a ton of flowers, but not one single zucchini. The plant had grown so big that it was taking over the garden and yard.
But what I assumed was a zucchini plant is actually not a zucchini at all. The plant was a volunteer from my compost and to me, it looked like a zucchini especially since the flowers were yellow. I had never grown a zucchini, but we receive tons of them from our CSA and all of the vegetable scraps get composted.
This past weekend, I had to cut back some of the plant. It had grown to at least 8 feet in circumference and I couldn’t get to the compost bin. It was blocking the way. That is when I noticed this surprise:
And I haven’t a clue what they are. Pumpkins? Watermelon? Fall squash?
So, I am calling all of the experts. So many of my readers are so knowledgeable about gardening and I’m hoping somebody can tell me what this is.
Have you ever gotten a surprise in your garden? Volunteers are fun, but it would be nice to know what this is.
AAAHHHH!!! Congratulations!! You are growing beautiful PUMPKINS!!! I grew them last year with great success, but this year they were doomed from the first by the bugs of death that seem to have taken over my garden. 🙁 Anyway, they are pumpkins and by the look of them, they should start turning orange in a couple of weeks. Once they are orange, cut the stem and wash them in bleach so they will last (if you want to use them to decorate for fall – that’s what I did last year). Mine lasted from July (I planted early) to the end of November when friend picked them up to chop, cook, and can! They looked super cute out on my front porch steps and lasted without rotting (thanks to the bleach). Enjoy!!
I have to agree, it looks alot like the pumpkin we had last year – I had to look carefully at the bottom of the one fruit. This year my one pumpkin plant froze – lousy freak weather.
I just took pics just like this from my garden tonight. Asking everyone!! They are planted among my squash and zucchini. I guess I wait until they turn Orange to pull them?
I thought pumpkins too. We didn’t grow any this year (and I am regretting it now…). You will have to post pictures of the mature fruit!
Looks like you have pumpkins growing. As fall comes on they will turn orange..dont worry about picking till plant dies back.
I agree that it sure looks like a pumpkin! What a fun surprise! I planted several hills – but not one came up.
I have no idea what it is, but it’s cute! 🙂
Those are pumpkins for sure. How great! I just did a post two days ago on my garden volunteer this year – an enormous sunflower. Garden surprises are so much fun.
Isn’t this Garden Party great? We can get all our questions answered…well, most anyway. 😉 My volunteer squash are white ones shaped like butternut. The only squash I grow is zucchini and pumpkins, so I’ve never had anything like this. We’ll see.
Thanks for posting this at the TGP!
I suspected it was a pumpkin, but I was not sure as I have never grown one before. My kids will be excited, but now I wonder if it is the kind that is decorative or edible. I had both last year.
Thanks for the comments.
Hey! So, you can use any pumpkin (even decorative pumpkins) to eat! I didn’t know this either! The process is the same as with a sugar pumpkin, it’s just on a larger scale, and a crockpot probably won’t be big enough. You’ll have to use the oven.
We have volunteer plants all over the yard! I have no idea how they got there! Lol
What a nice little volunteer. I love garden surprises (well, only if they’re good ones!). Enjoy the pumpkins!
How fun! I hadn’t a clue what that was – I was guessing some sort of squash. Can’t wait to see it in October!
The pumpkins I grew last year were not, what I thought to be, edible pumpkins (they were started with a seed from an old jack-o-lantern we saved from the year before). However, my friend who picked them up at the end of fall said that it really didn’t matter. She used any kind to cook up and can and it all tasted good once you added some spices. I can’t say for sure because I didn’t try any, but she’s been doing it for years, so I guess she knows what she’s talking about better than I do!
We had the same thing happen! Congrats on your “new babies”!
Every year I grow pumpkins in the yard for the kids’ Halloween (much better than paying $1/lb at the g-store or pumpkin patch). So if you still want to grow them next year, just put the pumpkins in the spot you want them in and let them rot into the ground and in the spring, mix the dirt in so the seeds get under dirt and you will have pumpkins every year! I have been doing that for five years counting and we always get pumpkins.
My volunteers this year are a cucumber plant (have no idea where that came from) and several tomato plants (need to remember not to put used tomato plants and fruits in my compost pile).
Good job!!
I was just blog hopping around and came across a women who had picked up veggies from the CSA. She showed a “globe zucchini” which I had never even heard of before. Guess what? It looks like a pumpkin! So you either have pumpkins (my original thought) or you could have “globe zucchini”. Guess we’ll see if they turn orange! 🙂
Depends how big it is — it could be an eightball squash too. They’re round and about the size of a softball. And yummy! It’s a kind of zucchini.
It looks like our Ronde de Nice, a variety of zucchini.
Hi! I had the same thing pop up in my garden this year, also from compost. Did you ever find out what they are, or if they’re edible? I have to say, I do NOT think they’re pumpins. I’ve grown pumpkins, and these plants are much more like zucchini plants. I have about 8 of these! They are taking over the garden, and I’m wondering if I should get rid of them, or keep them. What did you do?
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It’s been awhile since that post, but if I remember correctly it turned out to be pumpkin.
It most definitely is a pumpkin. I had a big surprise also around the first of July. Mine was planted by a bluebird that dug the seed from my compost box also. These were seeds from a year or two ago which I had thrown into the compost box after skinning and taking seeds out to cook for pies.
I was just googling to see if I could find out what my surprise squash/melon was and voila, same thing. I thought pumpkin as well, but it is not on a vine but a very zucchini looking plant. I’ll assume globe zucchini but wait a while and see, I didn’t plant either in this “flower” box.
I’m so glad you posted this we have a similar plant. The plant started growing we did not know what it was and so we left it to grow and now it is huge and starting to put out similar fruit . We believe ours came from bird seed since the feeder is above the area of where the plant began . The kids everyday water and have watched it grow around everything .
I have been searching all over the internet for something similar to your story. Well, my cucumber turned into a pumpkin!
I planted a cucumber and after several harvests the leaves and flowers all changed to a pumpkin. I am still not sure of what to do. Been searching all over the internet for something similar and here it is.
I have read several posts about zucchini in compost growing large. I have the same issue. Zucchini that looks like watermelon.
I agree with JoanL, it’s a Ronde de Nice zucchini. I planted pumpkins this year and 2 of the plants grew into these zucchinis that looked like small watermelons on the outside but sweet zucchini on the inside. I made a the most delicious soup out of them. I’ve saved the seeds to plant again.